Provision of cross-Demonstrator support
Lead Research Organisation:
Digital Catapult
Department Name: Digital Catapult Centre
Abstract
SUMMARY
Working with and across the four selected Demonstrators, Digital Catapult (DC) proposes a project to undertake a programme of activity over 2.5 years which will support the Demonstrator projects by: facilitating co-working and shared learning, providing and/or convening technical support where required, opening up engagement with and opportunities for the startup and scale up ecosystem and helping them make the most of the Demonstrator programme, and supporting a programme of showcasing and dissemination in order to increase impact.
The project will be a collaboration between DC and UKRI, which will help to meet the objectives set out in the Industrial Strategy, aiming to consolidate the country's position as a global creative powerhouse. The total cost of the project for core activities will be: £898,282.
It is proposed that contractual management and oversight of this project will be overseen by a Project Board, chaired by UKRI and including the relevant senior and operational staff from DC and UKRI. This Project Board meetings will sit alongside the formal oversight mechanism with a nominated Monitoring Officer, and will provide for senior level 'steer' of the project.
It is assumed that a similar mechanism will be put in place between UKRI and each of the Demonstrators to oversee contractual delivery of those contracts. DC will not be represented at those meetings.
Working with and across the four selected Demonstrators, Digital Catapult (DC) proposes a project to undertake a programme of activity over 2.5 years which will support the Demonstrator projects by: facilitating co-working and shared learning, providing and/or convening technical support where required, opening up engagement with and opportunities for the startup and scale up ecosystem and helping them make the most of the Demonstrator programme, and supporting a programme of showcasing and dissemination in order to increase impact.
The project will be a collaboration between DC and UKRI, which will help to meet the objectives set out in the Industrial Strategy, aiming to consolidate the country's position as a global creative powerhouse. The total cost of the project for core activities will be: £898,282.
It is proposed that contractual management and oversight of this project will be overseen by a Project Board, chaired by UKRI and including the relevant senior and operational staff from DC and UKRI. This Project Board meetings will sit alongside the formal oversight mechanism with a nominated Monitoring Officer, and will provide for senior level 'steer' of the project.
It is assumed that a similar mechanism will be put in place between UKRI and each of the Demonstrators to oversee contractual delivery of those contracts. DC will not be represented at those meetings.
Planned Impact
In response to the request from UKRI, Digital Catapult (DC) proposes a project to deliver a core programme of work across four work streams:
1. Convening across the demonstrators to share learnings and facilitate co-working
2. Identification and provision/sourcing of technical support to the demonstrators
3. Engaging startup and scale up s in the opportunity
4. Dissemination of learnings and showcasing outcomes
In addition, Digital Catapult proposes a set of additional activities, with indicative budgets, that could be added to the project, subject to further discussion and agreement. Further detail on each core work stream is provided in the sections that follow, including deliverables, resource requirements and associated budget. However, work across the four work
streams will be delivered using a common delivery approach to maximise efficiency and minimise impact on the Demonstrators.
1. Convening across the demonstrators to share learnings and facilitate co-working
2. Identification and provision/sourcing of technical support to the demonstrators
3. Engaging startup and scale up s in the opportunity
4. Dissemination of learnings and showcasing outcomes
In addition, Digital Catapult proposes a set of additional activities, with indicative budgets, that could be added to the project, subject to further discussion and agreement. Further detail on each core work stream is provided in the sections that follow, including deliverables, resource requirements and associated budget. However, work across the four work
streams will be delivered using a common delivery approach to maximise efficiency and minimise impact on the Demonstrators.
People |
ORCID iD |
| Amy Taylor (Principal Investigator) |
| Title | Immersive Audience Journey |
| Description | Audience of the Future Research Project by Digital Catapult: "Immersive Audience Journey" The purpose of the project emerges from a number of facts: Audience research is nascent regarding immersive audiences Notions of audience versus user, and methodologies in general, need clarifying for immersive productions The most relevant approaches and data points regarding audiences for live immersive productions are yet to be identified Understanding of customer journeys in relation to immersive productions is lacking or fragmented at best Execution Digital Catapult carried out the research by gathering and synthesising immersive audience insights in a timely fashion to serve the demonstrators beyond their own research activities. Upon publication, the research will also benefit the immersive community. This was achieved by interviewing 1) experts in Demonstrators, 2) practitioners in immersive companies and institutions, and 3) through open call for industry roundtables on the topic. During this process, the Digital Catapult team fed back initial findings to the demonstrators. Digital Catapult reached out to the immersive community to find interviewees. The research benefited from access to other programmes and institutions within Audience of the Future and UKRI networks. These included: AotF Design Foundations programme, galleries and performance venues with experience of hosting immersive productions, Creative Clusters, and other AotF programmes as deemed appropriate by UKRI. Results Digital Catapult delivered a final draft AotF research publication documenting the research in October 2019. Final copy edits and design will complete March/April 2020 The publication will deliver a comprehensive overview of audience/user-centred approaches to immersive projects, with examples from practitioners, thus providing a practical 'playbook' for audience and user considerations both during pre-production, production, and live phases of immersive entertainment productions. |
| Type Of Material | Improvements to research infrastructure |
| Year Produced | 2020 |
| Provided To Others? | Yes |
| Impact | The work has been presented at two industry-facing workshops (London and Belfast). The report will also be presented at an upcoming event held by Nesta in May and further distribution activities will be agreed with UKRI once copy editing and design and complete. |
| Description | Collaboration with Goldsmiths i2 Media Research |
| Organisation | Goldsmiths, University of London |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Sector | Academic/University |
| PI Contribution | Goldsmiths i2 Media Research is part of the Performance demonstrator and an opportunity to collaborate was identified during our second Shared Learning Workshop focusing on audience research methodologies. Goldsmiths i2 Media Research have an existing tool which aids that the evaluation of immersive user-experience which is a complimentary tool which facilitates the methodologies and insights of the Catapult's own research into Immersive Audience Journeys. This collaboration has taken the form of a number of meetings and to-date the co-delivery of 2 workshops targeted at industry. Further workshops are planned into 2020. |
| Collaborator Contribution | i2 media research participated in planning the workshop format and delivered a presentation of their evaluation tool in the workshops. |
| Impact | Please see the Research Workshop engagement items for further information on attendance. |
| Start Year | 2019 |
| Description | Immersive Audiences: How to design and evaluate immersive user journeys - workshop held in London for immersive audience research practitioners |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | This half-day Digital Catapult workshop explored the methodologies, best practises and guidance for designing and evaluating immersive user journeys with cost-efficient means. In partnership with i2 media research we'll explore the Immersive Audience Journey toolkit as a self-service tool to evaluate user experiences, alongside interactive 1-2-1 or small group sessions on how to kickstart immersive experiences utilising audience insights. Approximately 14 people attended the workshop held in London. The event was delivered in partnership with Goldsmiths i2Media lab. The workshop created a lot of conversation around how research is currently carried out and evaluated. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2020 |
| Description | Audience of the Future Demonstrator SME roundtables 1: Gathering and assessing immersive audience insights as input to the wider Immersive Audience Journey Research project |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | Regional |
| Primary Audience | Industry/Business |
| Results and Impact | This roundtable explored the methodologies, best practices and guidance for assessing immersive experiences, this roundtable targeted innovative organisations with an interest or experience in audience testing and user experience methodologies to feed into wider research as part of the Audience of the Future programme. Immersive technologies have seen rapid evolution over the past few years, but at the same time there has been little in the way of establishing clear methodologies, best practices or guidance for the testing and development of immersive content and experiences. For this roundtable (Wednesday 11 September) Digital Catapult looked for the most innovative organisations to feed into and validate findings, explore audience testing and user experience methodologies applied to immersive technologies. Participation in the roundtable supported Digital Catapult's research into the approaches and techniques used to gather insights into immersive audiences. The activity is part of the Audience of the Future programme, and has a specific focus on user testing and audience research methodologies, as well as documenting insights from immersive practitioners who have previously run immersive productions. Following inputs from the Audience of the Future demonstrators and other UK immersive content creators, this activity further validates insights with the immersive community. This session is purely an exercise in evidence gathering. This was part of a wider consultation that will feed into a published output later in the year. Approximately 5-7 SMEs attended the session |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
| Description | Audience of the Future Demonstrator SME roundtables 2 of 2: Gathering and assessing immersive audience insights as input to the wider Immersive Audience Journey Research project |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | Regional |
| Primary Audience | Industry/Business |
| Results and Impact | This roundtable explored the methodologies, best practices and guidance for assessing immersive experiences, this roundtable targeted innovative organisations with an interest or experience in audience testing and user experience methodologies to feed into wider research as part of the Audience of the Future programme. Immersive technologies have seen rapid evolution over the past few years, but at the same time there has been little in the way of establishing clear methodologies, best practices or guidance for the testing and development of immersive content and experiences. For this roundtable (Wednesday 11 September) Digital Catapult looked for the most innovative organisations to feed into and validate findings, explore audience testing and user experience methodologies applied to immersive technologies. Participation in the roundtable supported Digital Catapult's research into the approaches and techniques used to gather insights into immersive audiences. The activity is part of the Audience of the Future programme, and has a specific focus on user testing and audience research methodologies, as well as documenting insights from immersive practitioners who have previously run immersive productions. Following inputs from the Audience of the Future demonstrators and other UK immersive content creators, this activity further validates insights with the immersive community. This session is purely an exercise in evidence gathering. This was part of a wider consultation that will feed into a published output later in the year. Approximately 5-7 SMEs attended the session |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
| Description | Demonstrator Research Leads meet-up - York University |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | The purpose of the meet-up was as follows: - Digital Catapult to share progress/draft of it's "Immersive Audience Journey" research project and report. Specifically looking to gather insight and feedback from the convened group of Research Leads from across the Demonstrators - Updates from the Demonstrators & methodology discussions - User research timeline exercise: Synchronising clocks across Demonstrators' research activities - Networking We had a good representation from across the Demonstrators and received some feedback for the report and created an opportunity fo the Research Leads to get together. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2020 |
| Description | Immersive Audiences: How to design and evaluate immersive user journeys - workshop 1 of 2 held in Belfast. |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | This half-day Digital Catapult workshop explored the methodologies, best practises and guidance for designing and evaluating immersive user journeys with cost-efficient means. In partnership with i2 media research we'll explore the Immersive Audience Journey toolkit as a self-service tool to evaluate user experiences, alongside interactive 1-2-1 or small group sessions on how to kickstart immersive experiences utilising audience insights. Approximately 20 people attended the workshop held in Belfast in partnership with Digital Catapult Belfast who helped generate attendance from the local immersive community The event was delivered in partnership with Goldsmiths i2Media lab. The workshop created a lot of conversation around how research is currently carried out and evaluated. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2020 |
| Description | Knowledge sharing meet-up in Bristol with Fictioneer Demonstrators |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | Attended the Demonstrator offices to share research and insights around mobile augmented reality user-insights. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
| Description | Monthly 'Demonstrator Forum calls with Demonstrator Leads and other representation from the Demonstrator cohort |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A formal working group, expert panel or dialogue |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Study participants or study members |
| Results and Impact | The Demonstrator Calls are a monthly activity organised and chaired by the Catapult. They are designed for Demonstrator Lead attendance and to provide an opportunity to semi-regularly share challenges, updates and opportunities across the Demonstrator projects. These calls support the Catapult's ability to identify shared challenges that could potentially be supported through further Catapult intervention - such as technical support, workshops etc. They also provide an opportunity for the Demonstrators themselves to discuss their shared experiences and learn from their experiences. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019,2020 |
| Description | Partner Day 1: An event designed to convene all the demonstrators in one place along with representative from the AoTF Programme Sponsors and wider related programmes as relevant |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Other audiences |
| Results and Impact | Presentations from the following organisations: - Andrew Chitty - Challenge Director, UKRI - Digital Catapult - All Demonstrators Networking following presentations |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
| Description | Partner Day 2: An event designed to convene all the demonstrators in one place along with representative from the AoTF Programme Sponsors and wider related programmes as relevant |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Other audiences |
| Results and Impact | Presentations from the following groups: Andrew Chitty - Challenge Director, UKRI Update presentations from each Demonstrator, showing progress and projected challenges and opportunities for the year ahead (20/21) Networking session |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2020 |
| Description | Shared Learning Workshop 1: Convening the Demonstrators to identify and discuss common challenge areas and approaches to managing these challenges |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | Regional |
| Primary Audience | Other audiences |
| Results and Impact | Areas of exploration included: Creative and audience experience Technical delivery and logistics Business models and commercial considerations Aims of workshop: To share early ideas Identify common themes/interest areas Feedback on DC support and make suggestions for any additional support needed Representative of all Demonstrators attended the event. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
| Description | Shared Learning Workshop 2: Demonstrator Audience Research Activities & Plans |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Other audiences |
| Results and Impact | The event created a forum for members of demonstrator consortia to convene, share learnings and work with each other and industry experts to solve challenges. This event convened the Research Leads and colleagues from each demonstrator. Digital Catapult presented it's own research project 'Immersive Audience Research' for discussion and to look for future engagement and input. Each demonstrator then presented it's own research activities with a following panel to ask questions of each demonstrator research lead and a wider discussion of shared challenges and opportunities. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |